Shala Living Yoga
At A Glance
Vibe: Traditional, heat-forward, community-rooted
Standout Feature: One of the few studios in the Pacific Northwest running both a dedicated far infrared hot room and a separate cool room.
About Shala Living Yoga
Shala Living Yoga has been operating in Spokane for over 16 years, making it one of the longer-running independent yoga studios in the region. Owner Ara Lyman built the studio around a foundational conviction: that yoga is not just one thing, and a serious studio shouldn't act like it is. Her own training reflects that with a 200hr certification through The Yoga School of Spokane, a 350hr through Yarrow Hot Yoga, a 500hr Radiant Body Kundalini certification with Kia Miller, a KRI Level 1 certification with Guru Singh, and ongoing Ayurvedic councilor's training through the Shakti School, alongside a levels 1–3 sound healing certification.
With her qualifications and experience, Ara wanted to build a full-spectrum studio that encapsulated the spirit of yoga in all its methods. Ara runs the studio alongside her partner Jon, who is also a trained Kundalini Flow and 26+2 teacher, bringing a co-ownership structure that keeps the teaching embedded at the top.
The studio recently relocated to W Boone Ave just outside of downtown Spokane where 20th-century architecture blend with contemporary style, giving Shala Living an urban location without being in the thick of a bustling corridor.
What They Do Best
Shala Living's class menu is wide but structured around clear tiers of intensity and intention. On the hot yoga side: Hot 26+2 runs the traditional Bikram sequence in infrared rooms at 102–105°F, offered in both a standard 60- or 90-minute format and Hot 26+2 Vibes (the same sequence with the verbal cues dialed back and the music turned up). Shala Flow and Shala Power Flow are the vinyasa classes, running hot or warm depending on the session, while Shala Slow Flow offers a more deliberate pace for practitioners working on depth over speed. Shala Beginners is unheated and intentionally small, designed for foundation-building and learning from the ground up.
The Kundalini programming is notably substantive for a multi-style studio. Shala Kundalini + Sound Healing layers a Vinyasa warm-up into kriya work and closes with a gong and crystal bowl savasana. It’s a structured 75-minute arc that's distinct from a generic flow-plus-meditation format. Shala Kundalini Free is exactly that: no charge, open to all levels, with a sound bath included. On the restorative and energetic end, Yin + Sound Healing, Shala Restore, and Shala Yin/Yang round out the cool-room offerings, while Hot Buti features tribal dance, primal movement, and Vinyasa fused together. The variety of classes means a student can build a complete, multi-year practice and never get bored.
The Experience
Walking into Shala Living, the facility reads as a serious yoga space: two rooms, showers and locker rooms, with mat and towel rentals available. The infrastructure supports a real practice without requiring students to arrive fully equipped. The heated room holds temperature consistently, and the infrared system creates that characteristic dry, penetrating warmth that flow practitioners tend to prefer over steam-heavy environments.
Where the studio earns its reputation is with the teachers on the mat. The instructors here are well-trained and clearly invested in their students. Cues are purposeful, modifications are offered, and there's a sense that teachers are attuned to the energy of the room and adjust their practice accordingly. There’s a bit of a disconnect between the first-timer check-in to classroom flow, but the warmth of the teaching culture bridges the gaps for new students.
What Makes Them Special
In-house teacher pipeline: Ara Lyman runs teacher trainings across multiple formats (26+2, Kundalini Flow), meaning a meaningful portion of the teaching staff trained directly at the studio and carry a consistent pedagogical foundation.
Far infrared (FIR) heat: Both hot rooms use far infrared technology rather than conventional forced air, allowing for deeper tissue penetration with lower ambient air temperature relative to felt heat.
Free Kundalini classes: The studio offers Kundalini sessions at no cost, a structural commitment to accessibility that is not common in a paid boutique model.
Integrated sound healing: Sound baths with gongs and alchemy crystal bowls are woven into class formats (not just standalone events), with multiple teachers holding sound healing certifications independently of yoga instruction.
Why We Love It
Ara Lyman set out to run a studio grounded in traditional yoga methodology, and after 16 years, that commitment shows in the roster, the room design, and the work being done in each class. The teachers here are long-tenured, credentialed in depth and hours, and visibly connected to their students. Shala Living isn't chasing a single format or aesthetic, instead it's built around the idea that serious yoga practice requires serious teachers, whatever the style.
Visit: Shala Living Yoga | 412 W Boone Ave, Spokane, WA 99201 | https://shalalivingyoga.com/ | @shalalivingyoga
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